The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1887-08-31
Auditor Carr Says Thsrs is no 0,oasion Tor
the 0u!cry at This Tins,
And That There Will be no Trouble to Cat
Through the Year.
The Building of the Additional hospital
for the Insane Causes the Heavy Drain
Upon the Treasury.

ate attempt to mystify and alarm the dear
people by putting together a mass OF fig
ures in such shape as to indicate that the
State is in bad financial straits and that,
owing to alleged dereliction of her officers,
she has not honorably met her obligations.
Mr.. Coons has reputation as IAN expert
accountant" He is a peculiar genius in
that line Of business; one of that class
whose services have been much In demand
By Republican returning boards, and who
a. all TINES are 20 subserVient to the bosses
as have no difficulty in eking out live
lihood st the party's expense. Mr..
Coons' "expelt" work has given
hjm wide acquaintance. Il was
be. II viii be membered, who went do Gn
10 Jacksonville to examine ex.Warden
Towards books when the prison disclos-
uTes came and who magnifsd the shortage,
which was req less than $l3 000, to over
100000. 81 Lave discovered deficits in
the accounts aegregating 100000" said
the Deputy Au0 or exultantly when he
came back iron lie penitentiary, land
more thorough Examination may show a
shortage in excess of $150.000.' OF course
Mr.. Coons did not mean to deceive the
public in regard to the true condition of
the PRISONS affairs. No, he simply made
q mistake of something like 100000. HIS
mistake was of character tending
though, of course, not intended-to re-
dound to the political benefit of his party.
Considering Mr.. CooDs' reputation, q pru-
dent public, when informed that ne is the
author of the series of articles now being
published in the Journal and which are
calculated to destroy the States credit,
will receive the statements with some de-
gree of allowance.
The Journals principal charge against
the late Democratic State officers is that
the second instalment of school fund inter-
est for the fiscal year ending October 81,
1886, was not paid when it fell due, but
was carried over to the next fiscal year. In
order to ascertain the facts in the case
Sentinel reporter yesterday interviewed
State Auditor Carr himself with regard to
the delay in paying the interest.
"What does the school fund interest
amount to?" asked the reporter.
About $40, GOO in round numbers" re-
piled Mr.. Carr.
"And when is it paid?"
Semi-annually under the law. It falls
due May 10th and October 10th each year.
The sum of $4,000 is paid on each of
those dates"
"What amount of money was in the
general fund on October 10. 1SS62'
Mr.. Carr opened the books and said:
"Fiity-nine thousand dollars
GLOW could $4,000 be paid with
SCOOP
II don't know"
''What would you, as Auditor of the
State, have done under such circum-
| sIsDces%
81 don't know"
Would you not have been compelled to
carry the debt over, as Mr.. RIGS. did?"
81 don't know"
"What else could be done2"
81 don't known
Auditor Carr, although in painful
Ignorance OF any other course that could
l. a
right that three payments of interest
should be made in one fiscal
year. He did not know, evidently, that
| the Auditor could be compelled by writ of
mandate 10 pay the school tu0d interest
| Just as soon ss there was sufficient money
| in the treasury. Mr.. Rice lost no time IN
paying ii,aiter The general fuDd was replen-
isbed by the fall settlements in 1886
The truth is" said Auditor Carr,
''that there is no occasion for
all this hub bub about the
condition of the treasury. We are all
| right, and viii get through the fiscal year
all right. Gus Lemcke is, belly-aching,
around good deal, but bis estimates Do
not agree with mine, and you may depend
! its proper purposes as fast as it comes in. AS
1 told Governor Gray, am going to look
| after the benevolent institutions first and
| then the other things
81 have Just been doing little figuring
this afternoon" continued Auditor Carr,
land the result is not at all discourag-
ing. My estimates may vary some
what, but they are, l believe,
approximately correct. The disbursements
current expenses named in the general APP
preparation bill, the finishing and furnish
| ing of the additional hospitals for the in
sane, the building of the Soldiers Or
plans Home at Knightstown, and the
| erection of the Asylum for Predetermined
Children at Fit. Wayne, will aggregate,
according to as my T sstiT asi. m 1ns
be added $4,000, which it will
be necessary to draw from next year'sreve-
nue. for the maintenance of the benevolent
| institutions during the last month of the
present fiscal year. This makes a total of
81, SSS, 261. Now 1 find that the receipts
for The fiscal year will reach 81 373, 635. So
you see we ought to have no trouble to get
through. The payment Of school fund in
terest was provided for by the recent loan
| of $40, 600, made by the State officers, who
constituted Board of Finance"
1t will be seen by the above that Audi
tor Carr is not an alarmist like his deputy,
MIR. CooDs-
1t is intimated that the recent outcry was
brought about largely by a hitch
1 D6LNeen the AuQlpOI du0 l16 1ISdS-
| uIer. and sentence in Mr..
Cars remarks. quoted in the forego
ing, gives truthful coloriDg to the belief.
The Auditor seems disposed to freely exer-
else his prerogstive in the matter of draw
ing warrants when there is money in the
TreasnreTy. The Treasurer is not altogeth
er we'll plessed TO see the warrants come in
The chief cause of the depletion
of the States funds is the building of the
additional Hospitals for the insane. Gov
eruor Porter, in his message to the General
Assembly of 1888, strongly urged the estab
lishment OF these institutions. 1t was q
pet hobby of his and the Legislature with
due courtesy to him, passed bill provid-
ing for the erection OF hospital'
at Iogansport, Richmond and Evansville
under the provisions of the act the build
ing of the institutions was placed in th'
: hands OF Board OF Commissioners-twC
} Republicans and two Democrats-with tn,
Governor as PRECEDENT thereof. The Com
J miss0neIs were appointed by Governo
Porter aId he himself was president durinl
, the time when the bulk OF tn
, wo'k on the Hospitals was done, II
politics thP Bosrd was Republican and
will Re difiicult, therefore, for the Journs
aid Mr.. C1ons 10 fix any blame for lack o
t money updn the ex-Democratic State Off